| Bournemouth on 18:45 - Jul 9 by dirk_doone |
According to the Office for National Statistics, net migration in 2007, Blair's final year, was 237,000. In 2024, it was 431,000. That immigration under Blair was nearly all legal workers from EU countries, especially Poland and the Baltic states. Most of those people left after Brexit, since when we've had a big increase in migrants from Africa and the Middle East.
"In 2007, the main countries providing migrants to the UK were primarily from the expanded European Union. Poland was the largest single source country, driven by the historic 2004 eastern enlargement."
"In 2025, the main countries providing migrants to the UK were primarily driven by non-EU work and study visas, with top birthplaces including India, Nigeria, and China. For those seeking asylum, the top countries of origin were Pakistan, Eritrea, Iran, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh."
The NHS lost most of its European staff after Brexit, which is why they have their big recruitment drive now in Nigeria.
"In 2025, the NHS relied heavily on staff from Asian and African nations. Major sources included Nigeria, India, the Philippines, Ghana, and Zimbabwe."
The main effect of Brexit on migration was to massively increase illegal immigration and replace European migrants with migrants from Africa and Asia. Some cynics might say that was the plan all along: to replace European workers with cheaper ones from Africa and Asia. [Post edited 9 Jul 19:12]
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Plenty of 3rd world mass immigration happened with the Boris wave which was devastating, but you like to blame Brexit for everything. Intact it was Blair who initiated mass immigration from the third world on the British people.
When the New Labour government under Tony Blair shifted immigration policy in the late 1990s toward "managed migration," the volume and demographic composition of people moving to the UK changed significantly. Prior to the major expansion of the European Union in 2004, the vast majority of new arrivals came from non-EU nations.
According to historical data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and the Home Office (specifically tracking Long-Term International Migration and the International Passenger Survey from the late 1990s to the mid-2000s), Africa, Asia, and the Middle East accounted for roughly 70% to 75% of all non-EU immigrants entering the UK.
When looking at the total influx of all non-British citizens arriving in the UK during this specific late-90s to early-2000s window, these regions made up well over half (approximately 55% to 60%) of the total intake.
Regional Breakdown of Non-EU Inflows
During the peak of this policy shift, the proportional breakdown of long-term immigrants arriving from outside the EU was distributed as follows:
| Region of Origin | Estimated Proportion of Non-EU Intake | Key Driving Factors & Visas |
|---|---|---|
| Asia (including the Indian Subcontinent & East Asia) | 38% – 42% | Primarily driven by work permits in technology and healthcare, formal study visas, and established family reunification networks (predominantly from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh). |
| Africa (Sub-Saharan & North Africa) | 24% – 28% | Highly driven by international student recruitment, professional work permits (particularly NHS recruitment from countries like Nigeria and South Africa), and humanitarian paths. |
| Middle East | 5% – 7% | Heavily represented in the asylum and humanitarian pathways during the late 90s and early 2000s due to regional conflicts (e.g., Iraq and Iran). |
| The Americas & Caribbean | 8% – 10% | Mostly corporate transfers, highly skilled professional visas, and educational exchanges. |
| Other Non-EU Europe & Oceania | 15% – 18% | Included working holiday visas from Australia and New Zealand, alongside arrivals from non-EU European states (such as parts of the Balkans). |
The Policy Shift Behind the Numbers
The dramatic rise in numbers wasn't an accident; it was a deliberate economic strategy. Before 1997, UK immigration policy was generally restrictive, focused primarily on limitation. The Blair administration changed this by:
* Expanding Work Permits: The number of work permits issued was fast-tracked and expanded, rising from roughly 30,000 a year in the mid-90s to over 85,000 by the early 2000s, targeted heavily at plugging labor shortages in the NHS and IT sectors.
* Booming International Student Routes: The government actively relaxed restrictions on foreign students, allowing them to work part-time and transition more easily into post-study work visas.
* A Rise in Asylum Applications: The late 90s saw global instability (such as the Balkans, Iraq, and conflicts in East Africa), causing asylum applications to peak in the UK around 1999–2002.
This reliance on non-EU immigration dominated the demographic landscape until May 2004, when the UK opened its borders to the "A8" Eastern European nations (such as Poland and Lithuania), shifting the balance toward EU labor migration for the remainder of Blair's term.
Way before Brexit Blair was initiating his divisive policies. |  |
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